ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A berth in the NCAA tournament was not all the Terriers were playing for Monday night at the U.S. Cellular Center.

Wofford also was playing for a classmate and fellow student-athlete.

Wofford women’s soccer player Maggie Bosley took a trip to Argentina during Wofford’s interim in January. But instead of getting an opportunity to study outside the classroom, the senior from Aiken became gravely ill.

A week into her trip, Bosley began suffering from severe vomiting and intestinal bleeding.

She spent a week in the hospital in Argentina with doctors believing she had appendicitis. But surgery revealed that her appendix was fine.

With her fellow classmates already back in Spartanburg and doctors still unsure what was going on, Bosley finally returned to the U.S. after her week in the hospital.

Throughout her nine-hour flight to Miami, the symptoms continued. She was immediately taken to a Miami hospital upon landing and then transferred to the University of Miami hospital.

Bosley spent three weeks in the hospital in Miami, including 10 days in ICU, as doctors learned she had HUS, a disease that results from premature destruction of red blood cells. The disease clogs the kidneys and can cause life-threatening kidney failure.

Bosley suffered from seizures and went through dialysis in ICU before doctors diagnosed the disease and began treating her.

With Bosley in the hospital in Miami, the Wofford community began reaching out to her.

Her roommate, Alex Kachulis, started a Facebook page encouraging people to pray for Bosley, who said the feedback was incredible.

“When I was in the hospital when I was having seizures and all of that, I really didn’t know what was going on when I was in ICU,” Bosley said. “I didn’t have access to any social media. When I eventually got back on there I was just kind of blown away. There were messages from people from all over. It was insane. I was getting letters and packages from so many people. That really lifted my spirits.”

Bosley eventually got out of the hospital after three weeks and said her kidneys are functioning at 50 percent. At the height of her ordeal, they weren’t functioning at all.

After returning home, the support from the Wofford community continued.

Wofford athletic programs, including the men’s basketball team, began wearing shirts during warm-ups with “Team Maggie” written on the back.

Bosley spent her first day back at Wofford on Monday, then attended the Terriers’ championship win over Western Carolina.

She said she couldn’t miss her school trying for a shot at the NCAA tournament.

“I’m a Terrier,” she said. “I’ve been following them online. I knew the school was bringing buses, so I got my mom to bring me up to Wofford.”

Wofford players said they were aware that Bosley was coming to the game and having her in attendance was an inspiration.

As they have for the last three weeks, the Terriers wore their “Team Maggie” shirts during warm-ups, then defeated Western Carolina 56-53 to earn a third NCAA tournament bid in five years.

“We wear these shirts for her. She’s a Wofford Terrier,” senior forward Aerris Smith said. “We love her. For her to be here and see us get this win, it just means everything.”

Wofford coach Mike Young said having Bosley in attendance made the win even sweeter.

“She’s a part of our family,” Young said. “To have her here tonight was really special. We wanted to show her how much we love her and how supportive we are for her and her recovery.”

Bosley’s still has a way to go, but she has plenty of support from her fellow student-athletes as she continues to try to get back to full strength.

“I never expected anything like this to happen to me, and I never expected any kind of response like this, either,” Bosley said. “It’s just really awesome.”